Obesity Data Is A Joke
The University of North Carolina has allowed endocrinologist Joyce Harp and student researcher Lindsay Hecht to make a joke of the university. Harp and Hecht recently released a study claiming that 56% of NFL players are obese. It is the most ridiculous and least scientific study I have ever seen.
The study considered one set of data: the height-to-weight ratio of NFL players. Then, because most NFL players are heavy for their height, these geniuses come to the conclusion they are obese. According to Foxsports.com, Harp and Hecht got their "statistics" off the NFL website, meaning they used height and weight and that's it. The NFL's response--and I applaud them for not sticking the word "idiot" after the response--was to suggest that the data is inaccurate or at least incomplete because it doesn't take into consideration the weight of muscle in these players.
NFL football players are a rare specimen. Sure, there are skinny guys like Randy Moss, and there are certainly fat guys, like Gilbert Brown. But the vast majority of these guys--even the linemen--are in amazing shape. It's part of what they do for a living. Even most linemen these days are not only big and strong, but athletic and muscular. A layer of fat over a lot of muscle on someone who can run a 40-yard dash in five seconds doesn't make him obese. It makes him bigger, stronger and in better shape than 90% of Americans.
I'm not claiming NFL players don't face health risks. They get beaten and bruised every week, use of untested supplements is rampant and there's no shortage of drug problems in the league. But obesity? You have to be kidding me.
I'm curious about the circumstances of this study. Without having any knowledge of the situation, I would guess it was for a Master's program of some sort. I was recently speaking with a friend of mine who has been a professor at Iowa State University for 30 years. He told me of a Master's thesis which came to the conclusion that if you are nicer to people, they will like you more. When put into thesis-speak, almost anything can be Master's worthy. My suspicion is that Ms. Hecht will earn a passing grade for this, too.
That doesn't change the fact that this is incomplete science. Either the percent of obese NFL players is more like 3%, or we need a new definition of obesity.
The study considered one set of data: the height-to-weight ratio of NFL players. Then, because most NFL players are heavy for their height, these geniuses come to the conclusion they are obese. According to Foxsports.com, Harp and Hecht got their "statistics" off the NFL website, meaning they used height and weight and that's it. The NFL's response--and I applaud them for not sticking the word "idiot" after the response--was to suggest that the data is inaccurate or at least incomplete because it doesn't take into consideration the weight of muscle in these players.
NFL football players are a rare specimen. Sure, there are skinny guys like Randy Moss, and there are certainly fat guys, like Gilbert Brown. But the vast majority of these guys--even the linemen--are in amazing shape. It's part of what they do for a living. Even most linemen these days are not only big and strong, but athletic and muscular. A layer of fat over a lot of muscle on someone who can run a 40-yard dash in five seconds doesn't make him obese. It makes him bigger, stronger and in better shape than 90% of Americans.
I'm not claiming NFL players don't face health risks. They get beaten and bruised every week, use of untested supplements is rampant and there's no shortage of drug problems in the league. But obesity? You have to be kidding me.
I'm curious about the circumstances of this study. Without having any knowledge of the situation, I would guess it was for a Master's program of some sort. I was recently speaking with a friend of mine who has been a professor at Iowa State University for 30 years. He told me of a Master's thesis which came to the conclusion that if you are nicer to people, they will like you more. When put into thesis-speak, almost anything can be Master's worthy. My suspicion is that Ms. Hecht will earn a passing grade for this, too.
That doesn't change the fact that this is incomplete science. Either the percent of obese NFL players is more like 3%, or we need a new definition of obesity.
posted by Joe Siple | 10:50 AM
1 Comments:
Case in point - Robert Gallery, Offensive Linemen for Oakland.
6'7" 325 lbs
Ran the 40 yd dash at the 2004 NFL Combine in 4.98
Look at these other stats from the 2004 combine. This from a "fat guy":
Bench pressed 456-pound
Bench presses 225 pounds 24 times 620-pound squat
382-pound power clean
31-inch vertical jump
4.38 20-yard shuttle
7.43 three-cone drill
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